Poetry

Poetry and Suicide

Perhaps the most famous piece of prose ever written by Shakespeare is directly about suicide:

"To be or not to be, that is the question.
Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,
Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,
And by opposing end them?."
Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, by Shakespeare
He is not held back by concern for others or by fear, but by the unknown.

"The dread of something after death, -
The undiscover'd country, from whose bourn
No traveller returns, - puzzles the will
And makes us rather bear those ills we have
than fly to others we know not of"
Hamlet, Prince of Denmark

Here, the ancient Psalms (songs) tell us of that spiritual peril for some who die:

"How are they brought into desolation in a moment!
They are utterly consumed with terrors."
Psalm 73, verse 19

In a modern expression of the ancient Psalms, the writer cries out for relief:

"I am so depressed tonight, O God.
I feel as if I am the sole target
of an enemy barrage -
that all the demons of hell are bent
upon damning my soul for eternity.

Consume, O God, these demons that depress,
these enemies that plague my soul.
May the whirlwind of Your Spirit
sweep them out of my life forever.
May I awaken with a heart full of joy,
and with the strength and the courage
to walk straight and secure
in the dangerous
and difficult paths before me."

Psalm 83, Leslie F Brandt

Here are the feelings of a parent who lost a son to suicide:

"The Parents Left Behind
Forever mourning the lost child
Forever lamenting the lost dream
Forever facing the hole in the future
Forever feeling the hurt in the heart
Forever reliving the unbearable horror
Forever regretting the act not done
Forever searching for the reason
Forever seeking release for the love"
Copyright © 1998 Tony Salvatore
Just as others hurt us, so suicide adds further ripples of pain engulfing others.

There is another way to kill the pain
And release the song of your soul